College is a new adventure, and freshman year is filled with exciting twists and turns to branch out and meet new people. But, sometimes the relationships you find, aren't the ones you quite expected. And what about the high school friends you left behind?

Here are five lessons I learned about relationships during my freshman year.

Our semester chapel theme is "The Path: Walking in Humility and Integrity," grounded in the theme verses of Psalm 25:4-5, 8-9. Through Scripture, we are studying how to cultivate humility and integrity in our lives. Through spoken and sung prayers, we have asked God through the power of the Spirit to do this work in us as individuals and as a community.

I'll never forget my first week of college. My mom dropped me off at the airport, early on an August morning, with 15 strangers, boarding a flight to the Dominican Republic for a mission trip.

Some might argue that this doesn't count as my first, real week, but I beg to differ. As a college athlete, my experience started a week before classes, playing basketball in a foreign country, with a group…

This week in chapel, Dr. Lehman preached on the biblical concept of hope. His main texts included Titus 2:11, Romans 8:24-25 and Romans 15:13. God is the source of our hope, and with this hope He fills us with two qualities—joy and peace. This hope is the anticipation of God's grace, faith is the expectation of God's grace and love is the application of grace. Hope abounds with many benefits including…

This week in chapel, Dr. Evans preached about our responsibility as believers to be a witness of Christ and to attest to the truth of the Gospel. As Isaiah cried out to the Lord to "send me," we should have the same level of conviction. We should no longer be spectators, but we are required to become an active participant and witness for the Gospel. Dr. Evans emphasized that a witness is not silent…

GRTS is hosting a conference on justice and unity, focusing on the fracture between black and white Christians in America and especially the injustices suffered by the historic black church. We want to discover together how God by his Spirit wants to heal our divisions and move us toward unity.

Engaging this discussion involves facing fears and dealing with suspicions. First, some might be concerned…

This week in chapel, Jeff Lash preached a message on how we should seek to be humble as Christ is humble. Each day the media and culture bombard us with the notion that we must promote ourselves and put ourselves above others. Jeff showed from Philippians 2:1-11 that Jesus humbled Himself by becoming obedient to death­—even death on a cross. As Christ gave Himself up for His church, we as followers…

Editor's Note: Today, we've asked Ana Cruz, a GRTS counseling student, to share about her experience serving in her home country, Honduras, coming to the US, and leading others to continue serving. She offers a story of trust, simple obedience and God's faithfulness in hardship. She also offers an opportunity for others to join her and the team in Honduras this summer, July 2018. Prayerfully consider…

Editor's Note: Over the next two weeks, we are featuring several messages from Cornerstone University's undergrad chapel, which engage the topics of justice, race, reconciliation and love (listen to all CU chapel messages here). Today's message is by Marvin Williams, lead pastor at Trinity Church, Lansing, Mich. With each message, we've provided a "Talking Points Takeaway" as a point of reflection…

Editor's Note: Over the next two weeks, we are featuring several messages from Cornerstone University's undergrad chapel, which engage the topics of justice, race, reconciliation and love (listen to all CU chapel messages here). Today's message is by Kenneth Russell, director of diversity and multicultural affairs at CU. With each message, we've provided a "Talking Points Takeaway" as a point of reflection…

This week in chapel, Pastor Kizombo Kalumbula preached from the scripture 1 Corinthians 15:1-21 to emphasize the hope found in the resurrection of Jesus Christ our Lord and because Christ rose from the grave, we can trust that God will also raise our bodies after death. Without the truth of the resurrection, our Christian faith would be hopeless. Pastor Kalumbula taught that there are grave consequences…